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Celebrity

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NAME:
Jason Lewis

AGE WHEN CONTRACTED MALARIA:
39 and 40

OCCUPATION:
Writer and adventure traveller

WHERE DID HE CONTRACT THE DISEASE:
Indonesia and Laos, S.E. Asia

TYPE OF TRAVEL:
Jason travelled as part of Expedition 360, his own personal challenge to circumnavigate the globe using human power alone.

Situation: Jason contracted malaria twice during his journey, including the most dangerous form of malaria, P.falciparum.2
Jason was taking antimalarials on both occasions. The first time, after losing his clothes in a disastrous seas crossing, he didn’t cover up one night and was bitten by an infected mosquito. After three weeks of severe headaches and fever he finally went to the doctor and was diagnosed with malaria. The second time Jason contracted the most deadly form of the disease was in northern Laos, a part not often visited by tourists with an extremely high risk of malaria. As he was too far from a hospital, he was forced to self-diagnose himself with a field test kit.

Outcome: Jason recovered from the deadly strain of the disease, but had a relapse from his first bout of malaria two months after it first occurred. Since his return to England, Jason has not suffered any relapses for over two years but he is aware that it can resurface at any time for the rest of his life. He understands that he is very lucky to have survived to tell his story having caught malaria twice.